2012 Canadian Grand Prix - 3rd Practice

Sebastian Vettel set the fastest time in an extremely tight practice session. Fernando Alonso came second, but only 0.006 seconds behind Vettel. The time gaps don't increase much further down the grid either. Massa in sixth was only 0.3 seconds behind Sebastian,wile the top 15 was separated by 1 second.

Practice Results
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
2 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
3 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
4 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
5 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 18
6 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 7
7 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 8
8 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 24
9 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 16
10 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 21
11 - Paul di Resta - Force India - 12
12 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 15
13 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 9
14 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 23
15 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
16 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 28
17 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 13
18 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 20
19 - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT - 30
20 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 26
21 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 33
22 - Charles Pic - Marussia - 38
23 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 6
24 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 29

2012 Canadian Grand Prix - Free Practice 1 & 2

Lewis Hamilton looked in top form, as he posted the fastest times in both of Fridays Free Practice Sessions. He outshone teammate Button, who had car issues, and only managed to complete a total of 26 laps. The Ferrari's shone, with Massa & Alonso not far behind Lewis.

Free Practice 1
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
2 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
3 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 6
4 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
5 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
6 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 21
7 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 9
8 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 15
9 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 8
10 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
11 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 12
12 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 7
13 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 18
14 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 24
15 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 16
16 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 29
17 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 28
18 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 13
19 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 20
20 - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT - 30
21 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 23
22 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 33
23 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 26
24 - Charles Pic - Marussia -


Free Practice 2
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
2 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
3 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 7
4 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
5 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 12
6 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 9
7 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 8
8 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 21
9 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
10 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 6
11 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 15
12 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
13 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 18
14 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 24
15 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 16
16 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 20
17 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 23
18 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 13
19 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 106
20 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 110
21 - Pedro de la Rosa - HRT - 85.5
22 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 202.5
23 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 33
24 - Charles Pic - Marussia - Marussia - 38

2012 Canadian Grand Prix - Preview

2012 Canadian Grand Prix
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal



2.71 Miles per Lap
189.7 Miles
13 Corners
70 Laps



Last 5 Winners
2011 : Jenson Button - McLaren
2010 : Lewis Hamilton - McLaren
2008 : Robert Kubica - BMW Sauber
2007 : Lewis Hamilton - McLaren
2006 : Fernando Alonso - Renault

Track Stats
Most Wins : Michael Schumacher - 7
Most Podiums : Michael Schumacher - 12

Driver Stats

• Red Bull have never won the Canadian Grand Prix.
• Fernando Alonso is still looking for his 20th Fastest Lap.
• Before last years Canadian GP, it was guaranteed that Sebastian Vettel would lead the Drivers Title after the race, This year, any six drivers (Alonso, Vettel, Webber, Hamilton, Rosberg, Raikkonen) can lead the Championship after the race.

Weather
Friday : Sunny & Hot, with slight chance of thunderstorms
Saturday : Sunny & Hot, with slight chance of thunderstorms
Sunday : Sunny & Hot, with slight chance of thunderstorms

Last Time
Jenson Button gave on of his finest performances in a f1 car, with great drive to victory. On a drying track, he overtook Sebastian Vettel on the last lap, in one of the best final laps in the history of F1.  Michael Schumacher also had a good race, taking fourth, after being in the battle for second. Added that, to his "Pole" in Monaco, he could be a good bet for at least a Podium, and maybe a win?

This Time
Well, could we possibly have a seventh different winner in our seventh race. It's possible. We are still waiting for Lewis Hamilton to win, then there is Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean & Michael Schumacher. Felipe Massa also had a great Monaco GP, and then there is Sergio Perez and Bruno Senna, either of which could win. One thing that is certain, is that the race should not be bore-fest. Last year, it was the best race of the year, and we have had some good races even further back. Robert Kubica got his first win here, after Hamilton & Raikkonen collided in the pits.

Ranking - 27th May

Here are the new rankings after the mammoth Monaco GP. Fernando Alonso has gained on Jenson Button, with only 8.5 points between the two of them. Kamui Kobayashi has also moved up to ninth. Bruno Senna, Paul Di Resta, & Sergio Perez were also big gainers.

Rank - Driver - Points - Pre Rank
1 - Sebastian Vettel - 3680.5 - 1
2 - Mark Webber - 2569 - 2
3 - Lewis Hamilton - 2279 - 3
4 - Jenson Button - 2028 - 4
5 - Fernando Alonso - 2020.5 - 5
6 - Nico Rosberg - 1074 - 6
7 - Felipe Massa - 947 - 7
8 - Michael Schumacher - 609 - 8
9 - Kamui Kobayashi - 559 - 10
10 - Rubens Barrichello - 557 - 9
11 - Adrian Sutil - 532.5 - 11
12 - Paul DiResta - 457 - 13
13 - Vitaly Petrov - 456 - 12
14 - Jaime Alguersuari - 402.5 - 14
15 - Sergio Perez - 395 - 18
16 - Kimi Raikkonen - 380 - 16
17 - Sebastian Buemi - 370.5 - 15
18 - Pastor Maldonado - 359 - 17
19 - Robert Kubica - 326.5 - 19
20 - Heikki Kovalainen - 303.5 - 20
21 - Nico Hulkenberg - 253.5 - 22
22 - Nick Heidfeld - 243 - 21
23 - Bruno Senna - 232 - 25
24 - Romain Grosjean - 224 - 24
25 - Jarno Trulli - 211.5 - 23
26 - Timo Glock - 202.5 - 26
27 - Vitantonio Liuzzi - 155 - 27
28 - Daniel Ricciardo - 110 - 28
29 - Jean-Eric Vergne - 106 - 29
30 - Pedro De La Rosa - 85.5 - 30
31 - Jerome D'Ambrosio - 72 - 32
32 - Giancarlo Fisichella - 71 - 31
33 - Kazuki Nakajima - 44 - 33
33 - Narain Karthikeyan - 44 - 34
35 - Lucas Di Grassi - 29.5 - 35
36 - Karun Chandhok - 23 - 36
37 - Sakon Yamamoto - 18 - 37
38 - Charles Pic - 16 - 38
39 - Nelson Piquet Jnr - 15.5 - 39
40 - Luca Badoer - 5.5 - 41
41 - Sebastian Bourdais - 1.5 - 40
42 - Christian Klien - 1 - 42

2012 Monaco Grand Prix - Race

Mark Webber won an enthralling Monaco GP, beating of competition from Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton & Felipe Massa, who all finished within 6 seconds of each other.

Mark took the lead from the start, while chaos ensued behind. Romain Grosjean and Michael Schumacher got too friendly with each other. Romain caught Michael, and the touch was enough to spin the Frenchman. The cars around him reacted very quickly, ensuring there was no pile-up. However, some had to escape down the Pit-Lane Exit, while others went around the outside of the beached Lotus, and lost several places. Sebastian Vettel was the biggest gainer, jumping up to sixth, while others like Jenson Button failed to climb at all.With debris on the track, the safety car was called out for three laps, while the Lotus was removed. When the racing continued, Mark pulled out his lead over Nico Rosberg, who had managed to hold onto third. Lewis Hamilton was trying to stay as close as possible, while Alonso seemed to be holding up teammate Felipe Massa.

Throughout the race, there was a constant threat of rain. Drivers were continuously being told that rain was not far away, and it appeared that the race would be decided by the rain, and when the drivers decided to pit. The main decision the teams had to make was whether wait for said rain to appear, or to pit, allowing the driver to not slow down, in order to save their tyres. In the end, no rain materialized, allowing the drivers to continue on the strategies. It was Rosberg who pitted first, which failed to work for him, as Mark managed to pit, and return to the track in front of the Mercedes. However, behind Lewis' early pit-stop worked against him, as a blistering in-lap from Fernando Alonso ensured he jumped his former teammate, and by some distance. After the majority of drivers had pitted, it was Sebastian Vettel who lead, due to his lack of a pit-stop. He lead team mate Webber, the Rosberg, Alonso, Hamilton, Massa.

Once in the lead, Vettel set about extending his lead, to possibly keep his lead after a visit to the pits, or at least return as high as possible. He job seemed to be made easier by Mark Webber, who appeared to be holding up the cars behind him, helping Seb to pull out in front. Mark seemed to ensure that his teammate was kept at arms-length, as he hoped of returning back to 1st place, after Vettel had pitted. The other question, was who long the drivers could last on their tyres. With less degradation than people were possibly expecting, and with that possibility of rain, tyre saving was going to be vitally important.

After nearly 50 laps on the "harder" of the 2 tyres, Vettel pitted. He was unable to beat Webber or Rosberg, but he did manage to squeeze just in front of Lewis Hamilton to take fourth place. As it stood, it was Webber, Rosberg, Alonso, Vettel, Hamilton and Massa, who were all separated by about 10 seconds. It was set to be shoot-out for victory between six drivers. All 6 drivers were ridiculously close; but, time gaps did appear, and disappear. For a few laps, Rosberg & Webber seemed to have broken away slightly, only for them to be reeled back in. It became even tighter when they had to lap a back-marker, with little more than a papers width between the cars. The tension was built even more with rain. After over an hour of saying it was just around the corner, it was finally here, but it still wasn't listening to the team radios. At Rascas, it started to spit, but that seemed all. The first to blink was not one of the front-runners, but Jean-Eric Verge who was sitting in seventh. He went into the pits for Intermediate tyres, assuming that the weather would get worse. It did not. Some umbrellas did come out in the stands, but it never got hard enough for wet weather tyres.

This ensured Mark had a slightly easier job to take victory. Even though he was being hounded by 5 determined drivers behind him, Webber ensured he drove to victory. His win makes it 6 different winners in the last 6 different races. It also completes a hat-trick of Red Bull victories at Monte Carlo. Nico Rosberg finished second, with Fernando Alonso taking the final spot on the podium. Sebastian Vettel took fourth, after starting in ninth, while Lewis Hamilton went the other way, going from third to fifth. Felipe Massa finished in a solid sixth, only 6.1 seconds behind winner Webber.

Race Results
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
2 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 6
3 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
4 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
5 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
6 - Felipe Massa -Ferrari - 7
7 - Paul DiResta - Force India - 13
8 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 22
9 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 16
10 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 25
11 - Sergio Perez - Sauber -  18
12 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 29
13 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 20
14 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 26
15 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 34
16 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
R - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 24
R - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 17
R - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 10
R - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 8
R - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso -28
R - Charles Pic - Marussia - 38
R - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 12
R - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT - 30

2012 Monaco Grand Prix - Qualifying

Michael Schumacher set the fastest time, but will have to start in sixth place for tomorrow's grand prix after a five-place grid penalty.

The German veteran took Pole Position in a dramtic close to qualifying at Monte Carlo. We only just pipped Mark Webber to 1st, after the Aussie had appeared to have won Pole by himself. However, after setting the fastest time of anybody in the middle sector, Michael ensured he got his first "Pole" since his return, nearly three years ago. But, Michael will have to start from sixth tomorrow, after he was given a five-place grid penalty, due  his collision with Bruno Senna during the Spanish GP. So, it will be the Red Bull of Mark Webber who will start the race tomorrow, ahead of Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton & Romain Grosjean.

Further down, Alonso just managed to out-qualify teammate Massa, after the Brazilian set the fastest time during Q2. Unfortunatly, Felipe went slower in Q3, resulting in him being placed behind present teammate Fernando, and former teammate Schumacher (after his penalty).

Sebastian Vettel failed to impress at Monaco. He needed the Super Soft tyres to ensure passage from Q1, and that the ensusured he did not have enough tyres to produce a good enough time in Q3. In the end, the current World Champion decided against setting a lap time at all. He will start in 9th tomorrow, one behind friend Kimi Raikkonen, and two ahead of Jenson Button. The 2009 World Champion really struggled for pace, and was not really in with a shout of making the final section of qualifying. JB qualified 13th, but was promoted to 12th, due Pastor Maldonado's 10 place grid penalty, which was a result of a incident during FP3 with Sergio Perez.

The young Mexican will start from the very back tomorrow, due to an incident at the very beginning of qualifying. His stearing seem to break, and he collided with the barriers, damaging the suspension, and pulling of a wheel. Unable to bring the car back to the pits, Qualifying was momenterally Red Flagged, while the Sauber was moved. Sergio was taken to Hospital for mandatory checks, but he should be fine to race tomorrow.

The Grid For Tomorrow's Race

Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
2 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 6
3 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
4 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 24
5 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
6 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 8*
7 -  Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 7
8 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 18
9 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
10 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 22
11 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 10
12 - Jenson Button - McLaren -4
13 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 25
14 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 13
15 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 28
16 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 29
17 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 20
18 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 12
19 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 17**
20 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 26
21 - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT - 30
22 - Charles Pic -Marussia - 38
23 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 34
24 - Sergio Perez - Sauber -18

* After 5-Place Grid Penalty
** After 10-Place Grid Penalty

Ranking - 13th May

Here are the new rankings after the Spanish GP. Obviusly, Pastor Maldonado was the huge gainer today, jumping from 24th to 17th. But, he wasn't the only mover. Kamui Kobayashi has made it into the Top 10, for the first time ever. Lotus' Raikkonen & Grosjean also improved their ranking.

Pos - Driver - Points - Pre Rank
1 - Sebastian Vettel - 3738 - 1
2 - Mark Webber - 2507.5 - 2
3 - Lewis Hamilton - 2298 - 3
4 - Jenson Button - 2083 - 4
5 - Fernando Alonso - 2007- 5
6 - Nico Rosberg - 1012.5 - 6
7 - Felipe Massa - 949.5 - 7
8 - Michael Schumacher - 628.5 - 8
9 - Rubens Barrichello - 581 - 9
10 - Kamui Kobayashi - 570 - 11
11 - Adrian Sutil - 550.5 - 10
12 - Vitaly Petrov - 470 - 12
13 - Paul DiResta - 438 - 13
14 - Jaime Alguersuari - 412.5 - 14
15 - Sebastian Buemi - 383 - 15
16 - Kimi Raikkonen - 376 - 18
17 - Pastor Maldonado - 365 - 24
18 - Sergio Perez - 347 - 17
19 - Robert Kubica - 346.5 - 16
20 - Heikki Kovalainen - 287.5 - 19
21 - Nick Heidfeld - 261 - 20
22 - Nico Hulkenberg - 227.5 - 25
23 - Jarno Trulli - 221.5 - 21
24 - Romain Grosjean - 214 - 27
25 - Bruno Senna - 210 - 23
26 - Timo Glock - 196 - 22
27 - Vitantonio Liuzzi - 161 - 26
28 - Daniel Ricciardo - 110 - 28
29 - Jean-Eric Vergne - 88 - 32
30 - Pedro De La Rosa - 85.5 - 30
31 - Giancarlo Fisichella - 77 - 29
32 - Jerome D'Ambrosio - 73 - 31
33 - Kazuki Nakajima - 47 - 33
34 - Narain Karthikeyan - 32 - 34
35 - Lucas Di Grassi - 29.5 - 35
36 - Karun Chandhok - 26.5 - 36
37 - Sakon Yamamoto - 18 - 38
38 - Charles Pic - 16 - 39
39 - Nelson Piquet Jnr - 15.5 - 37
40 - Sebastian Bourdais - 8 - 40
41 - Luca Badoer - 5.5 - 41
42 - Christian Klien - 1 - 42

Ranking - 22nd April

Here are the new rankings after the Bahrian GP won by Sebastian Vettel. This weeks big winner was Romain Grosjean, who bursts into the top 30, and now sits 27th. Michael Schumacher also climbed into the top 8 again, while Paul DiResta also jumped 2 places into 13th.

Pos - Driver - Points - Pre Rank
1 - Sebastian Vettel - 3845.5 - 1
2 - Mark Webber - 2610 - 2
3 - Lewis Hamilton - 2331.5 - 3
4 - Jenson Button - 2150 - 4
5 - Fernando Alonso - 1974.5 - 5
6 - Nico Rosberg - 1028 - 6
7 - Felipe Massa - 968.5 - 7
8 - Michael Schumacher - 647.5 - 9
9 - Rubens Barrichello - 631.5 - 8
10 - Adrian Sutil - 568 - 10
11 - Kamui Kobayashi - 551.5 - 11
12 - Vitaly Petrov - 480 - 12
13 - Paul DiResta - 424 - 15
14 - Jaime Alguersuari - 423 - 13
15 - Sebastian Buemi - 397 - 14
16 - Robert Kubica - 359.5 - 16
17 - Sergio Perez - 354 - 17
18 - Kimi Raikkonen - 323.5 - 20
19 - Heikki Kovalainen - 284 - 19
20 - Nick Heidfeld - 283 - 18
21 - Jarno Trulli - 264 - 21
22 - Timo Glock - 211.5 - 22
23 - Bruno Senna - 210 - 23
24 - Pastor Maldonado - 209 - 24
25 - Nico Hulkenberg - 208 - 25
26 - Vitantonio Liuzzi - 164 - 26
27 - Romain Grosjean - 114 - 31
28 - Daniel Ricciardo - 94 - 28
29 - Giancarlo Fisichella - 83.5 - 27
30 - Pedro De La Rosa - 81.5 - 29
31 - Jerome D'Ambrosio - 74 - 30
32 - Jean-Eric Vergne - 70 - 32
33 - Kazuki Nakajima - 51 - 33
34 - Narain Karthikeyan - 32 - 34
35 - Lucas Di Grassi - 30.5 - 35
36 - Karun Chandhok - 26.5 - 36
37 - Nelson Piquet Jnr - 25.5 - 37
38 - Sakon Yamamoto - 18 - 38
39 - Charles Pic - 16 - 40
40 - Sebastian Bourdais - 12 - 39
41 - Luca Badoer - 5.5 - 41
42 - Christian Klien - 1 - 42

Rankings - 15th April

After Nico Rosberg's dominant display at Shanghai, he has finally broken into the top six, and overtaken Felipe Massa. Rosberg to 7th at the 2011 Spanish GP, so it has taken him just under a year to climb another spot. How long will it take the German to get into the top 5?

The new rankings after the 2012 Chinese GP.

Pos - Driver - Points - Pre Rank
1 - Sebastian Vettel - 3768 - 1
2 - Mark Webber - 2629 - 2
3 - Lewis Hamilton - 2368 - 3
4 - Jenson Button - 2206.5 - 4
5 - Fernando Alonso - 1989 - 5
6 - Nico Rosberg - 1034 - 7
7 - Felipe Massa - 965.5 - 6
8 - Rubens Barricello - 666.5 - 8
9 - Michael Schumacher - 644 - 9
10 - Adrian Sutil - 581 - 10
11 - Kamui Kobayashi - 546.5 - 12
12 - Vitaly Petrov - 489 - 11
13 - Jaime Alguersuari - 427 - 13
14 - Sebastian Buemi - 410.5 - 14
15 - Paul Di Resta - 404 - 15
16 - Robert Kubica - 372 - 16
17 - Sergio Perez - 338 - 18
18 - Nick Heidfeld - 296.5 - 17
19 - Heikki Kovalainen - 293 - 20
20 - Kimi Raikkonen - 269 - 21
21 - Jarno Trulli - 266 - 19
22 - Timo Glock - 214.5 - 22
23 - Bruno Senna 212.5 - 23
24 - Pastor Maldonado - 212 - 25
25 - Nico Hulkenberg - 193 - 24
26 - Vitantonio Liuzzi - 164 - 26
27 - Giancarlo Fisichella - 87 - 27
28 - Daniel Ricciardo - 82 - 30
29 - Pedro De La Rosa - 79.5 - 28
30 - Jerome D'Ambrosio - 75 - 29
31 - Romain Grosjean - 64 - 34
32 - Jean-Eric Vergne - 56 - 32
33 - Kazuki Nakajima - 51 - 31
34 - Narain Karthikeyan - 32 - 36
35 - Lucas Di Grassi - 30.5 - 34
36 - Karun Chandhok - 28.5 - 33
37 - Nelson Piquet Jnr - 28 - 36
38 - Sakon Yamamoto - 18 - 39
39 - Sebastian Bourdais - 17 - 38
40 - Charles Pic - 16 - 40
41 - Luca Badoer - 5.5 - 41
42 - Christian Klien - 1 - 42

2012 Chinese Grand Prix - Preview

2012 Chinese Grand Prix
Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai



3.387 Miles per Lap
189.559 Miles
16 Corners
56 Laps



Last 5 Winners
2011 : Lewis Hamilton - McLaren
2010 : Jenson Button - McLaren
2009 : Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull
2008 : Lewis Hamilton - McLaren
2007 : Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari

Track Stats
Most Wins : Lewis Hamilton - 2
Most Podiums : Kimi Raikkonen -4
Fastest Lap : Michael Schumacher - 1:32.238

Driver Stats

• In 2011, only Seven drivers stepped onto the podium (Vettel, Webber, Button, Hamilton, Alonso, Petrov & Heidfeld). After two races, there have already been Five different drivers on the podium (Button, Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso & Perez).
• Fernando Alonso is looking for his 20th fastest lap.
• Sergio Perez is set to race in his 20th race for the Sauber team.
• Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton are now locked together at 44 podiums each.

Weather
Friday :
Saturday :
Sunday :

Last Time
Lewis Hamilton took the first none-Red Bull win of the year with a great display, that proved that the Austrian team, and Sebastian Vettel, could be beaten. His strategy and driving skill helped him to beat his German rival. The result left us wondering whether 2011 would be a Vettel vs Hamilton battle. How wrong we were.

This Time
As apposed to the first none-Red Bull win, the team are currently looking for their first win of the season. They have struggled so far, and their luck has been running low. A second place at Australia could not be copied in Malaysia, half of that being due to a HRT front wing. Other teams will be looking to move on from the chaotic Malaysian GP. Ferrari will be hoping that race will be a one-off, but it looks likely that it may. So will Sauber, though they can still be hopeful for two points finishes. McLaren will be looking to improve. If luck had gone their way, they could easily of had a 1-2 at Sepang, resulting in a fantastic start to the season. However, lady luck was not on their side, and they have actually need a good weekend. Hamilton seems to be unbeatable on a Saturday, and will be favourite for Pole in China. Button, on the other hand, looks unbeatable on a Sunday. He cruised to victory in Australia, allowing him to control the race, and stay out of trouble. At Malaysia, he was not on his own out at the front,  and got too close to a HRT. It will be very interesting who comes out on top here. McLaren have won the last two Chinese GPs, while Red Bull will be very much hoping to stop their dry spot.

Rankings - 25th March

Sergio Perez's brilliant second place meant that the young Mexican jumped from 20th to 18th place, while the was some more movement below him in the rankings. Jean-Eric Vergne's 8th place meant his moves from 38th to 32nd, while Bruno Senna jumps from 26th to 23rd. The top 8 remained the same, but Schumacher retook ninth place of Adrian Sutil, and now has his eyes set on former team mate Rubens Barrichello in Eighth.

Here is the new rankings after the brilliant Malaysian GP.

Pos - Driver - Points - Pre Rank
1 - Sebastian Vettel - 3956 - 1
2 - Mark Webber - 2741.5 - 2
3 - Lewis Hamilton - 2408 - 3
4 - Jenson Button - 2325.5 - 4
5 - Fernando Alonso - 2032.5 - 5
6 - Felipe Massa - 1026 - 6
7 - Nico Rosberg - 935.5 - 7
8 - Rubens Barrichello - 711 - 8
9 - Michael Schumacher - 631.5 - 10
10 - Adrian Sutil - 622 - 9
11 - Vitaly Petrov - 513 - 11
12 - Kamui Kobayashi - 468.5 - 12
13 - Jaime Alguersuari - 455 - 13
14 - Sebastian Beumi - 446 - 14
15 - Paul Di Resta - 408 - 16
16 - Robert Kubica - 403 - 15
17 - Nick Heidfeld - 351 - 17
18 - Sergio Perez - 308 - 20
19 - Jarno Trulli - 306 - 18
20 - Heikki Kovalainen - 297 - 19
21 - Kimi Raikkonen - 251.5 - 23
22 - Timo Glock - 239 - 21
23 - Bruno Senna - 187 - 26
24 - Nico Hulkenberg - 186.5 - 25
25 - Pastor Maldonado - 186 - 22
26 - Vitantonio Liuzzi - 164 - 24
27 - Giancarlo Fisichella - 89 - 27
28 - Pedro De La Rosa - 84 - 28
29 - Jerome D'Ambrosio - 82 - 29
30 - Daniel Ricciardo - 74 - 30
31 - Kazuki Nakajima - 55.5 - 31
32 - Jean-Eric Vergne - 46 - 38
33 - Karun Chandhok - 35 - 32
34 - Lucas Di Grassi - 34 - 33
34 - Romain Grosjean - 34 - 33
36 - Narain Karthikeyan - 32 - 35
36 - Nelson Piquet Jnr - 32  - 35
38 - Sebastian Bourdais - 29 - 37
39 - Sakon Yamamoto - 18 - 39
40 - Charles Pic - 14 - 40
41 - Luca Badoer - 5.5 - 41
42 - Christian Klien - 1- 42

Rankings - 18th March

Sebastian Vettel stays as the Number 1 ranked driver, though it is closing behind hom. Jenson Button's victory means he is closing the gap on team mate Lewi Hamilton. There is also going to be a tussle for a top 10 spot. With Rubens Barriello and Adrian Sutil not in a race seat this year, 2 spaces will open up in the near future. Petrov will not be the favourite due to his move down the grid to Caterham. So that leaves Kobayshi in pole position, with the next driver with a current seat, being Paul Di Resta, who is around 80 points behind.

Here is the new rankings after the first race of the season.

Pos - Driver - Points - Pre Rank 
1 - Sebastian Vettel - 3936 - 1
2 - Mark Webber - 2691.5 - 2
3 - Lewis Hamilton - 2298 - 3
4 - Jenson Button - 2281.5 - 4
5 - Fernando Alonso - 1932.5 - 5
6 - Felipe Massa - 1014 - 6
7 - Nico Rosberg - 919.5 - 7
8 - Rubens Barrichello - 711 - 8
9 - Adrian Sutil - 622 - 9
10 - Michael Schumacher - 589.5 - 10
11 - Vitaly Petrov - 503 - 11
12 - Kamui Kobayashi - 468.5 - 14
13 - Jaime Alguersuari - 455 - 12
14 - Sebastian Buemi - 446 - 13
15 - Robert Kubica - 403 - 15
16 - Paul DiResta - 380 - 16
17 - Nick Heidfeld - 351 - 17
18 - Jarno Trulli - 306 - 18
19 - Heikki Kovalainen - 291 - 19
20 - Sergio Perez - 248 - 20
21 - Timo Glock - 231 - 21
22 - Pastor Maldonado - 182 - 23
23 - Kimi Raikkonen - 177.5 - 25
24 - Vitantonio Liuzzi - 164 - 22
25 - Nico Hulkenberg - 162.5 - 23
26 - Bruno Senna - 157 - 26
27 - Giancarlo Fisichella - 89 - 27
28 - Pedro De La Rosa - 84 - 28
29 - Jerome D'Ambrosio - 82 - 29
30 - Daniel Ricciardo - 56 - 33
31 - Kazuki Nakajima - 55.5 - 30
32 - Karun Chandhok - 35 - 31
33 - Lucas Di Grassi - 34 - 32
33 - Romain Grosjean - 34 - 38
35 - Narain Karthikeyan - 32 - 33
35 - Nelson Piquet Jnr - 32 - 33
37 - Sebastian Bourdais - 29 - 36
38 - Jean-Eric Vergne - 20 - NEW
39 - Sakon Yamamoto - 18 - 37
40 - Charles Pic - 12 - NEW
41 - Luca Badoer - 5.5 - 39
42 - Christian Klien - 1 - 40

2012 Australian Grand Prix - Free Practice

Jenson Button, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton got the best start to the season by topping the three Free Practice sessions before the first race of 2012. The McLarens scored a 1-2 on Friday morning, but in the afternoon, Michael Schumacher drove faster, beating Hulkenberg and Perez. On Saturday, McLaren got to the top again with Lewis Hamilton, with Romain Grosjean taking a surprise second place.

First Practice
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
2 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
3 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 10
4 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
5 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
6 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 7
7 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 33
8 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 23
9 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 25
10 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 14
11 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
12 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 23
13 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 16
14 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 26
15 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 20
16 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 28
17 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 19
18 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 6
19 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 41
20 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 11
21 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 21
22 - Charles Pic - Marussia - 41
23 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 33
24 - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT - 28

Second Practice
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 10
2 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 23
3 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 20
4 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
5 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 14
6 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 16
7 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 6
8 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 19
9 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 7
10 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
11 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
12 - TImo Glock - Marussia - 21
13 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 11
14 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 38
15 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
16 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
17 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 23
18 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 25
19 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 26
20 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 41
21 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 33
22 - Charles Pic - Marussia - 41
23 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 33
24 - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT -  28

Third Practice
Pos - Driver - Team - Rank
1 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 3
2 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 38
3 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 2
4 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4
5 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 7
6 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 10
7 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1
8 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 23
9 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 20
10 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 33
11 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Tor Rosso - 41
12 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 25
13 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 14
14 - Nico Hulkenberg - Force India - 23
15 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 26
16 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 5
17 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 16
18 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 6
19 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 19
20 - Vitaly Petrov - Caterham - 11
21 - Timo Glock - Marussia - 21
22 - Charles Pic - Marussia - 41
23 - Pedro De La Rosa - HRT - 28
24 - Narain Karthikeyan - HRT - 33

2012 Australian Grand Prix - Preview

2012 Australian Grand Prix
Albert Park, Melbourne



3.30 Miles per Lap
191.071 Miles
16 Corners
58 Laps



Last 5 Winners
2011 : Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull
2010 : Jenson Button - McLaren
2009 : Jenson Button - Brawn
2008 : Lewis Hamilton - McLaren
2007 : Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari

Track Stats
Most Wins : Michael Schumacher - 4
Most Podiums : Michael Schumacher - 6
Fastest Lap : Michael Schumacher - 124.125

Driver Stats

• It is set to be Maldonado's, DiResta's and Perez's 20th carer race.
• Sebastian Vettel needs one more Fastest Lap to take his tally to ten.
• Lewis Hamilton is after his 20th Pole Position.
• It will be the first time in 327 races that a Barrichello will not be on the grid.
• There is a Frenchman on the grid for the first time since the 2009 Abu Dhabi GP, and the last time there were three French drivers on the grid was the 1999 Brazilian GP starring Alesi, Panis & Sarrazin.

Weather
Friday :
Saturday :
Sunday :

Last Time
Sebastian Vettel eased to victory at the first race of last season. He took pole sitter Lewis Hamilton at the first corner, and was very really bothered for the rest of the race. Hamilton took second, ahead of a surprise Vitaly Petrov in third. Sauber tried to pull-off a one-stopper, succeeding wonderfully, with Perez finishing seventh, and Kobayashi ending up in eighth place. However, they were disqualified after the race for an illegal car. This pushed Paul Di Resta up to tenth place, to take his first World Championship Points on his debut.

This Time
As is usual for the first race of the season, the results are always a surprise. Whether it be a different car on the podium, as Rosberg & Petrov have done in previous seasons, or whether it will be a different winner, like Jenson Button in 2009. The only guarantee is that there will be plenty of action, a lot of talk on new rules, with probably a disputed part on one of the leading cars. It will also be the chance for the new drivers to show what they have got, as they start to build their F1 careers.

2012 Winter Testing - Jerez: Day 3

Nico Rosberg set the fastest time on the third day of Winter Testing at Jerez. The German beat Romain Grosjean and World Champion Sebastian Vettel, to set the quickest lap time. The McLaren of Lewis Hamilton, on his first day of testing, was 0.2 seconds behind Vettel, which could prove that McLaren are going in the correct direction. Alonso also took control of his Ferrari for the first time, but he could only manage the seventh fastest time. Giedo Van Der Garde also took control of his Caterham, as he begins his role as the teams test driver.

Pos - Driver - Team - Fastest Time - Laps
1 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 01:17.613 - 118
2 - Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 01:18.419 - 117
3 - Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 01:19.297 - 96
4 - Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 01:19.464 - 80
5 - Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 01:19.734 - 79
6 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 01:19.770 - 48
7 - Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 01:20.412 - 65
8 - Bruno Senna - Williams - 01:21.293- 125
9 - Giedo Van der Garde - Caterham - 01:23.324 - 74
10 - Jules Bianchi - Force India - NONE - 2

In the Mock Championships, Nico Rosberg has now taken the lead in the Drivers Race, while his team - 

Mercedes, are still in the lead of the Constructors Race. 

Mock Winter Testing Driver Championship

Pos - (Pre Pos) - Driver - Team - Points

1 - (6) Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 40

2 - (1) Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 35 

3 - (2) Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 33

4 - (3) Mark Webber - Red Bull - 30 

5 - (4) Paul Di Resta - Force India - 26 

6 - (5) Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 25

7 - (-) Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 18

8 - (-) Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 15

9 - (7) Jules Bianchi - Force India - 12 

9 - (-) Lewis Hamilton - McLaren - 12

10 - (-) Jean-Eric Vergne - Toro Rosso - 10

10 - (10) Sergio Perez - Sauber - 10

11 - (8) Jenson Button - McLaren - 8

11 - (8) Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 8

13 - (10) Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 6 

13 - (-) Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 6

15 - (-) Bruno Senna - Williams - 4

16 - (-) Giedo Van Der Garde - Caterham - 2

17 - (12) Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 1

17 - (12) Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 1

 

Mock Winter Testing Constructors Championship

Pos - (Pre Pos) - Team - Points

1 - (1) Mercedes - 73

2 - (3) Lotus -53

3 - (4) Red Bull -45

4 - (2) Force India - 38

5 - (5) Toro Rosso - 35

6 - (6) McLaren - 20

7 - (6) Sauber - 16

8 - (6) Ferrari - 14

9 - (9) Williams - 5

10 - (9) Caterham - 3

2012 Winter Testing - Jerez: Day 2

Michael Schumacher topped the time sheets on the second day at Jerez. Mercedes are still running with last years car, but are testing the new Pirelli tyres. The German veteran beat Australian duo Mark Webber and Daniel Ricciardo. Jules Bianchi got a chance to test his skills in the new Force India, while Kimi could not repeat yesterdays performance, by only setting the fifth fastest time.

Pos - Driver - Team - Fastest Time - Laps

1 - Michel Schumacher - Mercedes - 01:18.561 - 53 

2 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 01:19.184 - 58 

3 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 01:19.587 - 41 

4 - Jules Bianchi - Force India - 01:20.221 - 46 

5 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 01:20.239 - 26 

6 - Paul di Resta - Force India - 01:20.272 - 25 

7 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 01:20.454 - 38 

8 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 01:20.688 - 61 

9 - Sergio Perez - Sauber - 01:20.711 - 35 

10 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 01:21.197 - 78 

11 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 01:21.518 - 23 

12 - Pedro de la Rosa - HRT - 01:22.128 - 23

Mock Winter Testing Driver Championship

Pos - (Pre Pos) - Driver - Team - Points

1 - (1) Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 35 

2 - (6) Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 33

3 - (4) Mark Webber - Red Bull - 30 

4 - (2) Paul Di Resta - Force India - 26 

5 - (5) Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 25

6 - (3) Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 15

7 - (-) Jules Bianchi - Force India - 12

8 - (8) Jenson Button - McLaren - 8

8 - (9) Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 8

10 - (7) Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 6

11 - (-) Sergio Perez - Sauber - 2

12 - (10) Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 1

12 - (-) Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 1

Mock Winter Testing Constructors Championship

Pos - (Pre Pos) - Team - Points

1 - (2) Mercedes - 48

2 - (3) Force India - 38

3 - (1) Lotus - 35

4 - (4) Red Bull - 30

5 - (5) Toro Rosso - 25

6 - (6) Sauber - 8

6 - (7) McLaren - 8

6 - (8) Ferrari - 8

9 - (9) Caterham - 1

9 - (-) Williams - 1

2012 Winter Testing - Jerez: Day1

Kimi Raikkonen set the fastest time in the first day of Winter Testing for the 2012. The Lotus driver, who is returning to F1 after two years out of the sport, beat Paul Di Resta and Nico Rosberg. The Mercedes drivers of Rosberg and Schumacher were in the 2011 car, but all other 10 drivers where in new cars. Mark Webber could only manage the fourth fastest time in his Red Bull, while Jenson Button was eighth, 0.3 seconds faster than Felipe Massa. 

Pos - Driver - Team - Fastest Time - Laps

1 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 1:19.670 - 75

2 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 1:19.772 - 101

3 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 1:20.219 - 56

4 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 1:20.469 - 54

5 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 1:20.694 - 57

6 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 1:20.794 - 42

7 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber -1:21.353 - 106

8 - Jenson Button -  McLaren - 1:21.530 - 62 

9 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 1:22.815 - 69 

10 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 1:23.178 - 28 

11 - Pastor Maldonado - Williams - 1:23.371 - 25 

12 - Pedro de la Rosa - HRT - 1:23.676 - 44

To make the Winter Testing that little bit more exciting, we have the Mock Winter Testing Driver Championship, and the Mock Winter Testing Constructors Championship to keep us entertained. The points given out are the same as in races, and hopefully it should give us a good image of who was the fastest after the 12 days of testing.

Mock Winter Testing Driver Championship

Pos - Driver - Team - Points

1 - Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 25

2 - Paul Di Resta - Force India - 18

3 - Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 15

4 - Mark Webber - Red Bull - 12

5 - Daniel Ricciardo - Toro Rosso - 10

6 - Michael Schumacher - Mercedes - 8

7 - Kamui Kobayashi - Sauber - 6

8 - Jenson Button - McLaren - 4

9 - Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 2

10 - Heikki Kovalainen - Caterham - 1

Mock Winter Testing Constructors Championship

Pos - Team - Points

1 - Lotus - 25

2 - Mercedes - 23

3 - Force India - 18

4 - Red Bull - 12

5 - Toro Rosso - 10

6 - Sauber - 6

7 - McLaren - 4

8 - Ferrari - 2

9 - Caterham - 1